


Welcome Home

by Hisha



Series: Auntie Hornet [6]
Category: Hollow Knight (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Hornet is Grimmchild's caretaker, female Grimmchild
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-10-17 03:36:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20614316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hisha/pseuds/Hisha
Summary: The new Troupe Master is finally ready to come take her place.





	Welcome Home

Brumm was practising with his accordion when he heard Divine call to him :

“Come on out! Master Grimm is back!”

He set his instrument down immediately and rushed outside the main tent under the scarlet sky to find a younger version of his old troupe master affectionately petting the Grimmsteeds.

“Welcome home, Master!” Divine chirped.

“...Welcome home”, Brumm repeated.

Divine's children then ran out to see and circle around the new Grimm.

“Wow, is that him?” they asked. “Is that really him?”

“It's 'her' currently”, the young Master corrected them. “And I didn't know we had new recruits.”

“Aren't my little leg nibblers adorable?” Divine cooed. “They were born shortly after the last Ritual!”

The Master extended her hand to the children and told them how pleased she was to meet them.

She really was the spitting image of her father. Her voice was nowhere near his raspiness but it would get there eventually.

Brumm could feel something else about her was different, and it wasn't just the age and pronouns.

Grimm was always just Grimm. They were never the same person twice. Both of these statements were true and the musician knew this. But no matter how similar she was to her father, all Brumm could think of was the second statement. She wasn't him, she simply carried the same-

“Are you feeling alright, Brumm?” she asked him, interrupting his train of thought.

“Mrmm. Just thinking. I'm glad to have you back.”

“Let us get inside and make up for lost time, shall we?” the young master said.

They all followed her inside, even the Grimmsteeds. She told them of what she had been up to in her absence. Divine and her children regularly gave commentaries and questions Grimm (or Scarlet, as her aunt had apparently named her) happily replied to. Grimmkins slowly gathered around them.

Brumm didn't say a word. He was barely listening anymore. All he could think about was the cycle of death and rebirth continuing. The endless song would claim this Grimm eventually, just as it claimed the previous one. He knew he had plenty of time to be ready for it, but wasn't sure he could.

Also, he really wish he had his instrument with him to occupy his hands.

“...He still won't let me copy or even approach the books but the museum project is coming along nicely”, young Grimm explained.

The musician excused himself a moment to go pick up his accordion, then came back while playing as quietly as he could. He didn't want to interrupt the Troupe Master, that would be rude.

“It's been so long since I've heard your music”, she said. “Could you play something for us?”

Without any hesitation, Brumm started playing her father's favourite tune. He remembered when his old Master would sit and listen to him play, the child napping in his arms. Now this child was looking at him with the same eyes as he once did.

She clapped when Brumm finished his tune and everyone else followed. He bowed and thanked them mechanically.

“My apologies for keeping all of you waiting”, the young Master said.

“No worry, Master!”, Divine reassured her. “You had a lot of growing... Yes, a lot of it to do before you were ready to take your place.”

Brumm went back to his room.

A while later, as Brumm was pacing around his section of the tent, he heard the young Master's voice from behind him :

“Is something troubling you, my friend? You've been even quieter than usual.”

She was holding the tent wall open with one hand, careful not to step inside the small room.

“Mrmm. I'm fine. Don't worry about me.”

“You know you can talk to me. I am always willing to listen.”

He repeated that everything was fine and went back to pacing, knowing full well he wasn't fooling anyone. He stopped again.

“It's just...” he hesitated. “Nevermind.”

Could he tell her? Should he? He knew how the previous Grimm worked but he wasn't yet sure just how similar or different this one had become.

“Take as much time as you need”, she told him. “I can wait.”

“...You won't be mad at me?” he asked.

She tilted her head slightly, seemingly confused, then took one step forwards.

“Why would I be mad at you?”

He had piqued her curiosity now : he had to go through with this.

“I tried to stop it”, he blurted out.

“Beg your pardon?”

“The- The last Ritual. I tried to stop it. But your other parent decided to complete it anyway. I bear them no ill will.”

She stared in silence for an agonizingly long moment.

“...Are you mad at me?” he asked.

“You were so attached to my father... I didn't think you would- Wait. Perhaps that is exactly why you did this? He _was_ about to die, after all...”

“He was born into invisible chains, just like you were. Prisoners of the endless cycle. Cursed to always sacrifice yourselves to the Heart only for it to claim your life again. Don't you deserve better? Don't you deserve to be free of this burden?”

“I see your point, Brumm. But my chains are part of me. You and all the mortal bugs here could exist without yours, but... I cannot.”

“You've been carrying this through countless lifetimes. If you cannot live to enjoy your freedom, you should at least get to finally rest in peace.”

Young Grimm sighed.

“...You are right”, she agreed after a moment of staring at the floor.

“So you're not mad at me”, the musician concluded.

“How could I be? Now, I just... need some time to think.”

And then she teleported away, leaving Brumm alone with his thoughts again.

Scarlet returned to her aunt's home and was welcomed by her asking where she went.

“I was catching up with old friends”, the child explained. “From before my parent came into the picture. I must have lost track of time... I apologise.”

Hornet pulled up two chairs, sat on one and invited her niece to sit on the other, which she did.

“Let me guess”, her aunt said. “You remember them from a past life.”

“...Yes. I did spend some time with them as a small baby, but... I do not remember that. Not from my own perspective anyway. I'm not sure how to explain...”

“My father still remembered his past life after his transformation. At least this is what I've gathered from what his wife said.”

Scarlet adjusted her position on her chair.

“In my case it was more a transfer between my father and me than a transformation”, she explained.

“How long has your bloodline been... 'transferring' like this?” Hornet asked.

“So many lifetimes ago... Ever since the dream and nightmare were split. We were born to accomplish the same task and make sure it continues.”

“So were my siblings. They suffered a terrible fate just to maintain a status quo. And yet Ghost...”

“I know, auntie. I know. It found a way. There's always a way. Maybe... I could find a way too. Maybe.”

Hornet dragged her chair closer to pull Scarlet into an affectionate side-hug.

“I know you can”, she smiled. “So, are you going to introduce me to your old friends?”

“...Maybe later.”

While her aunt was sleeping, Scarlet travelled all the way to the deserted Distant Village. With all of Hornet's responsibilities as queen in Dirtmouth, they hadn't visited the place in a while.

Scarlet entered the mausoleum where the memories of Herrah the Beast and the vessels laid. There was a thin layer of dust over it all but nothing else had been disturbing their peace since the last time she had visited the place with her caretaker.

She examined the few broken pieces of items left behind by her parent. There wasn't much, and none of it was usable in any way ; however a small fragment with a very faint yet familiar aura caught her attention. She picked it up and held it close to her scarlet eyes. Yes. This was what she came here for.

Most of the Dream Nail the Ghost Knight used to wield didn't exist in the physical realm, and half of its physical part was missing. It was completely unusable. But there's always a way.

She then popped back into the nightmare realm. Most creatures needed some tool to access it (which was why the Grimmkins had been working on making more to send wherever the Ritual could take place), but she did not.

She went into Divine's tent and presented the piece of Dream Nail to her.

“A gift?” she asked. “For me? Oh, Master Grimm, you shouldn't have...”

In bunk beds behind her, her children stirred in their sleep.

“I would like to ask a small favour of you and the Grimmkins”, the Troupe Master said.

Divine had a knack for fixing things and make them better than ever, even though her methods could be unconventional even for other members of the Troupe.

“Anything for you, Master!”

Young Grimm explained her idea.

“Oh... quite unusual!” the half-masked bug commented. “Let's start right away!”

_The next day..._

Hornet finished up her work on a new cloak while her niece was telling her about the Troupe.

“...But motherhood hasn't changed her much it seems”, Scarlet continued. “Are you done?”

“Almost.”

A few moments and a quick change later, they entered the nightmare realm. Red skies, a large tent and a faint, distant beating sound welcomed them here.

The child stepped inside and proclaimed :

“Here comes Lady Hornet, First of Her Name, Queen of Dirtmouth!”

She performed an overly dramatic bow as Hornet passed and assured her there was no need for full titles right now.

Brumm interrupted his playing and greeted the guest.

“Mrmm. Are you here to visit?”

Hornet nodded. Then Divine's children rushed in and all around her.

“Who are you?”

“You smell different!”

“Please behave, children”, young Grimm told them. “This my aunt. She raised me until I was ready to come back here.”

“I am _still_ raising you”, the queen of Dirtmouth stated. “You're barely older than these children must be.”

The Troupe Master ignored the comment and led everyone deeper into the tent, where the stage was. All the seats for the audience were empty. Hornet doubted the Troupe had much of an audience in a place like this even at the best of times.

“Mother's busy right now”, one of the children explained.

“She's working on something”, another added, “she can't come out until it's done.”

“Must be important”, Brumm thought aloud.

“It's a-” yet another child started.

“Don't spoil the surprise”, the Troupe Master interrupted them. “She will tell us all about it when she is ready, I am sure.”

“You already know what it is!” the first child chimed in.

“I know everything that happens in my domain and your mother told you so, didn't she? Now, let us show our guest around.”

“Is that surprise something I should be concerned with?” Hornet asked.

Her niece confidently assured her that it wasn't, and led her to different parts of the tent.

Some rooms were separated from the rest with curtains and others with thin yet solid walls. While the queen of Dirtmouth didn't get to see everything, the space she did see was already bigger than what she had expected when viewing the tent from the outside.

“How do you even move this tent?” she asked.

“We do not actually take all the rooms with us when going to the physical realm”, the Troupe Master explained.

Soon, they were back in the stage area. Divine's children were off playing somewhere else and Brumm was practicing with his instrument. Hornet watched him for a little moment, then stretched one long silk string over her needle and started to follow the melody. He stared in surprise but didn't say anything nor stop playing.

Young Grimm snapped her fingers and one Grimmkin Novice appeared behind her with a chair. Without even looking, she sat down and the Grimmkin disappeared.

Brumm played part of the melody, Hornet repeated it, and they went back and forth like this for a moment until she knew well enough to actually play _with_ him instead of after him. Then they kept going like this until the end of the piece.

The Troupe Master stood back up and clapped ; the musicians responded with a little bow.

“I would be delighted to have the two of you play together more”, she told them, “but your kingdom needs you, auntie.”

“Let us go back home, then”, Hornet said while removing the string.

“I _am_ home already”, her niece stated. “This is where I belong.”

“Are you saying you won't be coming back to Dirtmouth?”

“I will lead you back to Dirtmouth but won't stay there. I have to lead my Troupe. Surely you understand. And I will still visit you.”

“You're not even fully grown yet”, Hornet pointed out.

The Troupe Master didn't see how that was relevant. Brumm assured their guest that it was all fine.

“Will I at least get to visit?” she asked.

“I will be visiting you”, her niece replied.

Hornet sighed.

“Very well”, she said. “If this will make you happier to stay in this realm, I will not attempt to stop you.”

“Thank you, auntie.”

“What do you mean she left?” asked Taon.

They had come to the queen's house to check in on her and the princess but had only found the former.

“She's with... old friends”, she explained. “Of her father.”

“She had a father? Wait, lemme rephrase that : you know who her father was?”

“I've never really met him. When I first saw Scarlet, she had already been adopted by my sibling.”

“And the father died or somethin'.”

Hornet nodded, then got up from her seat at the table and walked to the window.

“Will she end up like him?” she wondered, staring through the glass. “Or...”

“Or what?”

She kept staring silently. She didn't want to bother Taon with her & her family's problems. What could they do about any of this?

She turned to them and explained Scarlet would still visit from time to time.

“Good”, they said. “'Still gonna miss her though.”

“...I am afraid not many others will. And this is why she was so eager to leave.”

“That's bull- ah, screw it. You're right”, Taon sighed.

Hornet served her guest and herself a drink of sugary water and sat back down. They kept chatting for a while.

“I'm just sayin'”, the merchant said, “these idiots just- I mean, yeah I also was weirded out at first but like. She's a very nice kid once you get to know her. But they don't even try to. 'Cause they're idiots.”

Their host replied with a noncommittal hum and finished her drink.

“I hope she'll visit soon”, she said.

And, over the years, Scarlet did keep her promise.


End file.
